Dustin McGowan is Back

[Santos]

Ive followed and watched this kid throughout his whole entire career...as soon as i heard of the legend himself doing the damage he was doing in the minors, i knew we had a potential ace on our hands. Living in the city and working at the dome from 06-09, im happy to say ive been to a ton of his starts and was always in awe of his impressive arsenal. Watching the way he's pitched so far since his return, I'm telling you all that i honestly dont think ive ever seen him throw the ball as sharp as he has so far this season.

 

I know its a small sample size and coming into the game as a reliever is quite different from being a starter, but the question with McGowan wasnt ever how good his stuff is...its whether he can control it and stay healthy. Take a look at what he's shown so far:

 

His K rate is at an all-time high at 11.57/9 while his walk rate is at an all time low of 3.09/9. What makes this even more impressive is that his GB% has eclipsed 50% for just the second time in his career also setting an all time high at 53.8%.

 

The quality of his pitches is what makes me most excited. The velocity of his fastball, slider and change are all career highs with his fastball now being registered at 95.1MPH on avg. During the games he has hit as high as 98.

 

So the question here is what exactly do we have on our hands here? If healthy, is McGowan soon to be the top of the rotation starter that we thought he was destined to become years ago OR is he on the blink of becoming a top notch closer in the American League?

 

What do you guys think? Should the organization play it safe and not try building him back into a starter in fear of risking injury or does an arm like this need to be stretched out and tested into a rotation? I think either way, its safe to say Dustin is back and he is poised to be an x-factor for this team moving forward

[Abomination]

Dustin is really a good question. If he stays relatively healthy, I think he'll be either a higher end starter or a closer. His stuff is just too dominant for anything else. The question is in how we can keep him healthiest.

[Pete_7]

Dustin is really a good question. If he stays relatively healthy, I think he'll be either a higher end starter or a closer. His stuff is just too dominant for anything else. The question is in how we can keep him healthiest.

 

You can keep him healthiest in the pen, but he is being wasted out there by limiting his innings in that role.

[Abomination]

You can keep him healthiest in the pen, but he is being wasted out there by limiting his innings in that role.

 

I'm not sure we can say that. The original reports apparently suggested that having him start where he gets structured and regular work, with proper time to warm up would be best for his health. If he can stay healthy he definitely provides the best value in the rotation though.

[Caper]

You can keep him healthiest in the pen, but he is being wasted out there by limiting his innings in that role.

 

No. He is on the weighted ball program. He can pitch 300 innings now.

[Pete_7]

No. He is on the weighted ball program. He can pitch 300 innings now.

 

300? More like 3000

[Flashman]

I reckon if he makes it through the season healthy, he'll be happy to push for being a starter again. I'm sure he'd be driven by his desire to live up to his potential after he's grown secure with his arm again, but that 2015 option is also a little tricky. $4m for a reliever in his 30s with a long injury history might limit his market a bit. Trying out as a starter again might feel risky, but it's probably a decent calculated gamble.

[Jimcanuck]

remember Eckersley and smoltz? two guys that were top end starters and became dominant late inning relievers? I think of these guys when I think of McGowan going forward

[dineke]

Starter or die trying.

[Boxcar]

remember Eckersley and smoltz? two guys that were top end starters and became dominant late inning relievers? I think of these guys when I think of McGowan going forward

 

Eckersley wasn't a top end starter.

[Laika]

Eckersley wasn't a top end starter.

 

Sure he was

[Laika]

So the question here is what exactly do we have on our hands here? If healthy, is McGowan soon to be the top of the rotation starter that we thought he was destined to become years ago OR is he on the blink of becoming a top notch closer in the American League?

 

Probably neither. Sorry.

 

I'll take "decent middle reliever with power stuff and inconsistent results". And that of course is IF he stays healthy.

[TBJ12]

Sure he was

 

It's a bit surprising to see he was actually a much better starter than he was a reliever.

[Boxcar]

Sure he was

 

He was consistent. He didn't have the type of peak I expect from a frontline guy.

[Boxcar]

Probably neither. Sorry.

 

I'll take "decent middle reliever with power stuff and inconsistent results". And that of course is IF he stays healthy.

 

Shut up